Eternal Snow
by PinkStarz
Summary: On Seto Kaiba’s seventeenth birthday, an angel named Shizuka arrives at his window, bearing a challenge he doubts he has the ability to fulfill.


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~Eternal Snow~

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On Seto Kaiba's seventeenth birthday, an angel named Shizuka arrives at his window, bearing a challenge he doubts he has the ability to fulfill. 

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(Disclaimer: Yeah… I don't own YGO. But I do own a poster of Seto Kaiba! )

(a/n: This plot also somewhat resembles 'Full Moon Wo Sagashite', which is an excellent anime, but not completely. For one thing, Seto has no desire to sing. ^_^".)

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Part **O**ne: **A H**eavenly **D**escent

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October

The night had enveloped the small city, bringing forth a multitude of automatic bright lights; however, despite their illumination, the consuming moon spread its light over almost every dark crevice. The celestial moonlight even shone into an otherwise dark room, where a boy was two minutes away from turning seventeen.

His eyes, dimmed to a shade that rivaled the shadows cast upon the snow outside, were staring mindlessly at a stack of papers in front of him. A moment ago he had an intention, yet when his eyes had unconsciously flickered to the small clock on his phone, he realized that his birthday was moments away. 

Shaking his head, he muttered a warning to himself and dismissed all thoughts about contemplating why tomorrow would be different than the rest. It wouldn't be, he told himself. He would merely get up at his consistent time, get dressed for school, go through his classes with stable boredom, leave for Kaiba Corp when classes were dismissed, and finally, arrive home to work, as usual. Despite the monotony of his life, he was content with it -he regretted nothing. Another year added merely meant another year wasted. Internally, he cursed with this thought.

_What would happen when I'm gone?_

Unknowingly, his fingers raised to his neck, where he softly touched the warm flesh. Beneath the skin, none would have suspected a turmoil occurring. He half expected his chest to close up as it had been doing for the past few months, and for his blood to be forced from his raw lungs, deprived of oxygen. Crimson streams would escape through his mouth, and he would ultimately become helpless, his own body undoing him.

Desiring fervently to wrench his mind from deprecating thoughts, he retrieved his pen and was prepared to set the ink onto paper when a chill froze his right hand mid-air. His eyes widened slightly in wonder; last he had checked, his windows were sealed shut, opened only in the suffocating depths of summer.

He muttered a curse, which was becoming almost habitual, as he slid back his chair and moved to shut the window. He was slightly surprised by how quickly the room had welcomed the cold, considering that with each breath escaping his mouth, a puff of frost would appear. However, no sooner had he turned around when he started, having taken in the full view of the window, and the figure standing to a near lean at the right corner.

She was a celestial being, the very sight of her stopping Seto in his tracks and almost causing him to forget the need to breathe. The beauteous creature bore a white dress, deeply resembling the snow drifting behind her; the dress was full and elegant from its simplicity, bearing long sleeves, a v-cut neckline, which revealed a silvery necklace holding a cross, and blossoming into a lush gown that stopped at an arc above her knees, yet continued past her ankles at the back. Her legs were concealed partially by lustrous white ribbons that began from her pearly shoes and criss-crossed their way up to her knees, ending with the remaining loose strands flowing alongside rhythmically with the back of her gown and long, sundry shaded hair. 

When she stepped down from the window's ledge, she revealed a pair of wings. They were small things, no more than a meter in width, and were a heavenly white shade. A few feathers escaped their hold; however , they disappeared once touching the floor, leaving only the remnant of a shimmer. 

"When one is sick, shouldn't they be in bed?"

Another step was taken, exposing the being in the streaming moonlight. Seto started, having seen her before. In an instant, his awe was replaced with ire and he replied with a snap.

"What the hell are you doing here, and who put you up to this?"

The angel appeared startled for a moment. "Seto Kaiba, this isn't what you perceive it to be…"

"Then I'm dreaming!" he nearly shouted, angered by the absurdity of the situation. "But I highly doubt that -I'm fully awake. Now I suggest you get off my property before I have to call my security guards to escort you out."

"Seto Kaiba, I am an angel," she said, placing her hands together in a fit of nervousness, "and I'm here to help you."

"Help me?" He released a short laugh. "I think _you're_ the one who needs help. Last I checked, you were alive and clinging onto your brother during my dueling tournament a year ago."

Narrowing his eyes, he examined her as she struggled to think of a response. The girl was clearly flustered, almost on the brink of crying. Slightly curious about the realistic features of her costume, Seto took two quick strides to the girl, until only an inch of air separated them. He reached a hand out to touch her left wing, but was startled when he was met with a quick slap on the wrist.

"What's your problem?" he demanded, and in anger, grabbed her by the shoulders. However, his hands quickly drew back from the frigid sensation. Glancing down at his palms, he was bothered to see that they were bright red and singeing. 

"I died, Seto Kaiba!" she exclaimed, her cool composure lost in the midst of spilling crystalline tears. "And you will, too, if you don't heed my advice!"

"I don't believe this," he muttered, staring at her with an almost vacant expression. He repeated the statement as a means to convince himself, but as he remembered the iciness surrounding her, the unearthly glow on her cheeks, and those wings with the vanishing feathers, only an advanced and highly planned amount of trickery could have accomplished this. And Jonouchi was not one to be able to pull it off so cleanly.

However, what startled him more than the presence of the angel was her identity. When he had last seen Shizuka, she was perfectly healthy and alive. Reportedly, Jonouchi had used the money from Duelist's Kingdom to pay for an eye surgery of some sort. Seto hadn't really cared about Jonouchi's family, god knew they were as dense as him, yet now that there was the prospect of the smiling, even pretty, girl being no longer part of this world, a sense of remorse began to haunt him.

"I'm sorry," Shizuka said, placing a hand onto his shoulder. He flinched, expecting frost to seep into his skin, but was surprised that her hand was now warm. "I didn't mean to upset you…"

"Well, what did you expect?" He turned away from her, deciding that collapsing on an armchair seemed adequate. "It's not everyday an angel, whom I somewhat know, comes through my window."

"Yes, well…" Shizuka remained at her position by the window, yet her dark eyes sought his despite the darkness enveloping the room and distance between them. "As I said before, I'm here to help you."

"Really? How?"

Shizuka frowned at the expression of skepticism on Seto's face. Nodding her head, she snapped her fingers and from a puff of baby blue smoke, an equally light blue notebook appeared, a pen accompanying it. Floating up a few inches in desire for a more comfortable position, Shizuka took a sitting position with her legs crossed and the book propped on her lap. The angel flipped through a few pages, and upon arrival of the desired page, her frown deepened and she shook her head.

"Oh dear…" she said softly, tapping the pen to the book. "This… is going to be difficult…"

"What is?" Seto demanded, suddenly interested. He leaned forward on the armchair, and when Shizuka didn't reply, he stood up and went to her.

"Seto Kaiba, listen carefully to me," she said, her eyes penetrating his. Once sure that she had his undivided attention, she began to narrate from the book " 'As of one year from now, October 25, 2:34 am, Seto Kaiba must demonstrate a heart of benevolence to all beings, or else he will suffer the consequence of death.' "

"Is that it?" Seto asked, narrowing his eyes. He waved a dismissive hand. "That can be easily done. All I have to do is ignore everyone around me."

"Uhm…there's more…"

"Spit it out."

She nervously twisted one of her sleeves in her hands as she spoke of the next requirement, and there was a slight blush on her cheeks. "You must also fall in love with another being…"

"What?!"

He made a futile attempt at grabbing the book, but Shizuka managed to float quickly out of the way. "Seto Kaiba--"

"That's Kaiba!"

"_Seto_…" When there was no hint of defiance, she continued. "This can be done. You just need to open your heart."

"Listen, I don't need God's lackey to tell me how to live my life!" Seto growled. "Get out, and forget everything that happened here."

"But--"

"It doesn't help that you're Jonouchi's sister, either…"

"But--"

"Need I push you out the window?"

"But this is my first assignment!" With the statement made, Shizuka burst into tears, which was far more ear piercing than the last time she had sobbed in his presence. "I was so excited, and I thought that Seraphim would be so proud of me… and… and--"

"Alright, alright already! I get the point!" He closed his eyes, on the verge of a migraine. "I just…. It isn't possible. Not for me, at least."

"That's not true," Shizuka said softly. She studied him for a minute before nodding to herself again and reaching for the book. Quickly, she scribbled down some words and with a flick of the wrist, sent the book away in a puff of blue smoke.

"What did you do?" Seto asked, suspicious. 

The angel smiled. "I've decided to help you."

"As in--"

" -Telling you what to do and how to do it. With my guidance, you'll be guaranteed a long, mortal life."

"You seem so assured…" Seto near muttered, his eyes narrowed, "for someone who is related to Jonouchi. What are you intending to do, follow me around all day?"

"Of course not!" she cried out, a hand put to her breast in astonishment. "If you need me, all you need to do is ring this bell!" 

"What be-"

With a snap of her fingers, a small bell hung of a silver chain materialized.

"I will not wear that," he said between clenched teeth, staring at the jewelry as if it were a dog's collar. There was another snap of two fingers, and the chain found itself around Seto's neck. He released a strangled cry and attempted to remove the necklace by pulling on it viciously, hoping that the chain would break.

"It's mythril," Shizuka said calmly, "so I wouldn't bother."

Defeated, Seto shot a glare at the heavenly girl before trudging to his bed and collapsing onto it. With a tug, a silken navy sheet was covering him and a few moments later, his breaths became slow and steady.

"Aren't you going to change your clothes?" Shizuka questioned, floating to where Seto was sleeping. However, there was no response; he had fallen asleep.

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(a/n: Is this worth continuing or should it be banished from the fan fiction realms?)

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End file.
